Tag Archives: recipe

Yuletide Tipples

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How quickly have the holidays crept up on you this year?

For me, 2010 is wrapping up (and unwrapping) way too fast! Summer seems like just yesterday, and I’ve barely had enough time to document all the bottles and glasses that have crossed my palate since (and I apologize).

However, I do have some interesting and awesome news to report:

1) I completed my WSET Level III Advanced course!

Last week, I wrote my final exam, which consisted of 50 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer/mini-essay sections and two blind tastings.

This course is largely why I have absent from the blog in the past month and a half, but it is my hope that future posts will be much better and more enlightening because of it! I feel very positive that I achieved a high score, so I am eager to find out and share my final marks with you. Here’s to a Pass with Distinction!

2) I am going to Boston Wine Expo 2011 in January!

It’s been a while since I last travelled, and I definitely wanted to visit somewhere new that just happened to feature vinous excitement in the dead of winter.

Fortunately, Boston is one such place! At the Expo, I’ll be at the trade tastings, and I’ve signed up for a Maison Drouhin tasting featuring Premier & Grand Cru wines from Burgundy, a Ribera del Duero seminar and a vertical tasting of Champagne Ruinart.

Needless to say, I’ve also been researching Boston dining and plan to eat my way through the city, so I’m very excited and can’t wait for my trip – please stay tuned for upcoming posts about my Bostonian adventures in food and wine!

I leave you temporarily with a couple of lip-smackingly tasty libations and one mulled wine recipe below, because of course, no Christmas season is worth toasting without having something yummy to toast with!

Until the next post, I hope you all enjoy a safe and happy holiday, and wish you all the best in 2011!

- Debbie

P.S. Suggestions on fun and interesting sights and flavours in Boston cheerily accepted in the Comments section!

Arran Amarone Cask Finish Single Malt Whisky

From the Isle of Arran’s only malt whisky distillery comes this unique Amarone-cask finished single malt, featuring single malt whisky of at least 8 years old that is matured for a further 8 months in a used Amarone cask.

Exhibiting a nose of dark chocolate, dusty wood and dried fruits (not to mention notes of classic Amarone’s passito-dried grapes), this copper beauty with rosy highlights is delicate on the palate, with mild notes of cherry, fragrant wood, spice, cocoa and dried fruit, finishing long with a dryness that hints at its tannin-soaked wood finish. I’m thinking this would be a spirited (!) food pairing with spicy/nutty dishes featuring raisins or other dried fruit, like Moroccan lamb tagine or Lebanese rice pilaf? Also sure to be wonderful after dinner with a wafer of very dark or bittersweet chocolate. $85

Pinhal da Torre Vinha do Alqueve 2006

I’m starting to discover the light wines of Portugal, a country that, like Spain, is represented on Canadian liquor store shelves with bottles of amazing value for their complexity and drinkability.

Vinha do Alqueve is the mainstream regional red blend of Pinhal da Torre, a winery from the Ribatejo province (now known as Tejo, Portuguese for the River Tagus, since 2009). For this blend, varietal wines made from indigenous grapes Trincadeira, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca plus Cabernet Sauvignon and Tinta Roriz (aka Tempranillo) are vinified separately and then blended and aged in barrel, following a traditional Bordeaux method of production.

This is an inky, purplish black wine with a soft but complex nose of black and red fruits, tar, fall leaves, herbs, oak and earth. The palate is a plush, thick array of soft black and red fruit flavours with a nice savoury, foresty layer – a deliciously easy-drinking combination. Try this with boiled beef brisket or tongue with a crusty loaf of bread and spreads like aioli, grainy mustard, horseradish and/or pistou on the side. A terrific value at $12.

Chef Debbie Presents: Glöggignon Blanc

This is a really simple white mulled wine recipe that has all the flavour of regular Glühwein without the embarrassing maroon stains that those who love a good mulled wine are likely to incur. I eyeballed a batch this week for a work potluck, and it turned out so well that I figured I may as well record the recipe and share it with you all!

Ingredients (Serves 10 – 12; double the recipe and make it in a stockpot over the stove for a bigger batch)

  • 1.5 L dry white wine (I used Sonora Ranch Sauvignon Blanc)
  • 750 ml water
  • 3 – 5 oz. spirit of your choice (brandy, rum or vodka work well; I used my cardamom and cinnamon-infused vodka from this post! Or just add Christmas cheer for a subdued, less punchy version)
  • 1 large orange
  • 1 lemon
  • 3 slices of ginger root, peeled
  • 20 – 25 cloves
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • pinch ground nutmeg
  • 3 star anise (I didn’t have this on hand for my initial batch, but it would be an excellent addition)
  • 10 pink or white peppercorns
  • Honey or syrup to taste (I used golden cane syrup)

Directions

  1. Into a slow cooker (turned off) or stockpot, add your wine, water and liquor.
  2. Using a vegetable peeler, peel the zest off the orange and lemon into strips. Add to pot. Slice orange and lemon crosswise into thin slices and then in half again to make small half-moons. Add to pot.
  3. Add ginger, cloves, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, star anise and peppercorn to pot.
  4. Set slow cooker to its Low setting or your stockpot over medium-low heat until the mixture just reaches a slow simmer. Let brew for at least 3 – 4 hours, stirring in honey or syrup to taste just before serving in heat-proof (not plastic) cups. Enjoy!

Infusion Project

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Ho, what’s this; a non-wine post?!

I have always wanted to infuse my own flavoured spirits. I’ve had some good experiences making my own mulled wine and hot rum toddies in the past, and I thought it would be neat this year to introduce some fall flavours into my current diet via my cocktail glass instead.

Essentially, creating your own custom flavoured moonshine involves simply the addition of a clean, flavoured article of food, or a few, into your favourite neutral spirit. Cocktail Times explains the process well at this link, but basically the only formula you need to know is neutral spirit + flavoured ingredient x room temperature + time = infused booze.

This weekend, I’m having some gal pals over for good wine, great conversation, and needless to say a classy cocktail or two, so I decided to give infusion a shot (no pun intended) and take advantage of (a) man-free hours sans boyfriend who is travelling in Ecuador, so I have full licence to enjoy my homemade cocktails and act accordingly silly should I feel the urge; and (b) the jar of Oculus Cherries I was gifted this summer after having volunteered at an event.

Oculus Cherries - available via www.missionhillwinery.com

I suppose my creative urges in the mixology department make my friends my guinea pigs for the night – but I don’t think any of them will complain about getting martinis on the house, do you?

Check out this photo of my cinnamon-cardamom vodka on Day Two – it’s already pale chartreuse in colour! (Sorry for the image blurriness.)

INFUSION RECIPE: One cinnamon stick to roughly 20 cracked green cardamom pods in roughly 500 ml of vodka. (I poured a bit of the vodka into a reserve container to make room for the infusion ingredients in the original bottle, as I could not find an infusion jar in time for this recipe.) As for vodka, I'm a big fan of both Canadian Iceberg and Russian Vodka, both of which I find more neutral than most, and reasonably priced.

There are some floaties in there because I cracked the cardamom pods with the flat side of a knife prior to infusion, but I will be using a pour spout, so I think all the solid particles will be filtered out.

I think I’ll taste it in another day or so to check for doneness; if it’s got enough flavour then I’ll put it in the freezer, where it will slow the infusion process down to a standstill.

The first recipe below is the one I have in mind for testing at my party. Note that it’s still totally all up in my head at the moment, so I’ll have to update later with results!

In the meantime, cheers and happy infusing!

The Eye Opener

  • shaved ice
  • 3 oz. cinnamon-cardamom vodka
  • 1 Oculus Cherry
  • ginger ale

Place shaved ice and infused vodka into a cocktail shaker. Stir vigourously with a bar spoon. Add Oculus Cherry into a chilled martini glass. Strain vodka into glass. Top with splash of ginger ale and serve.

The Panopticon*

* A concept devised by Jeremy Bentham and later expanded on by Michel Foucault, referring to a powerful yet covert surveillance measure used to apply discipline within a society. More at this link. (That’s right – I used a Foucauldian reference… Booya! Communications degree at work!)

Okay, before I digress too far into philosophy, I have been mulling over how to use my Oculus Cherries in a Manhattan-type cocktail, as Manhattans are one of my all-time favourite cocktails, and I just thought that the Panopticon, with its aggressive meaning, was quite an apropos eye-related name for my stiff drink that will most certainly leave you wondering, is anyone watching?

Again, also untested, but will hopefully mix up one or ten of these soon; if you try one first, let me know how the recipe turned out for you!

  • shaved ice
  • 3 oz. good quality Canadian rye whiskey or American bourbon, whichever you prefer your Manhattans to be made of
  • 3/4 oz. Oculus Cherry juice from the jar
  • 1 Oculus Cherry
  • small coin of orange peel

In a cocktail shaker, add shaved ice, rye/bourbon and Oculus Cherry juice and stir vigourously with a bar spoon. Place Oculus Cherry in a well chilled martini or rocks glass. Strain cocktail mixture into glass. Gently squeeze the orange peel exterior (the orange side – not the white rind side!) over your cocktail to release a delicate spritz of citrus oil over the surface of the drink (the goal is just to make your drink aromatic – not bitter). Enjoy with a Mad Men DVD, or a really good jazz or blues CD.

Summertime and the Living is Easy

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Just wanted to share some photos of random summer beverages and meals I haven’t blogged about.

For those out there reading, I hope your summer is going swimmingly!

Pairs well with rose quartz and amethyst.

The 2009 Prospect Winery Trutch Map Rosé is the latest vintage of this yummy summer sipper. Juicy and fresh with loads of red orchard fruit on the nose and palate, it is ideal for enjoying out on the patio. I’d be willing to wager that it’d make a fantastic rosé sangria base as well! $13

This is Gucci trying to cool down from the insane sauna-like temperatures in my apartment. Notice his primo placement right in front of the fan in the background?

Full of refreshing summertime flavours like grapefruit, citrus and freshly cut grass, how can one resist a glass of Mission Hill Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2007 under the blazing heat of the sun? $19

This was an interesting wine to try: RABL Gruner Veltliner Speigel 2005. I got this at Peninsula Village BC Liquor Store, where it was heavily discounted at 30% off ($14 instead of $20). I’d say that this was a little past its prime – the fruit character was presumably diminished from its former self, and there were lots of secondary flavours of musk, petrol and fungus. Still worth a try though, and not a bad match with my pan-seared halibut cheeks topped with cooked herb salsa and warm potato salad.

Here is Gucci getting curious about the sounds and people in the alley. (Cat lovers: Don’t worry, my Juliette balcony is bordered off with chicken wire!)

Last night’s meal – sweet corn on the cob with butter and cornmeal-coated catfish fritters topped with jalapeno salsa. I found a gigantic fillet of catfish at IGA for just $7! How could I resist? The crusty coating was a success. I didn’t photograph the wine, but it was Sumac Ridge Private Reserve Pinot Blanc 2006. Surprised to still see a wine of that age on the shelf (as above), but it was still decent nonetheless.

And last but not least… Regular readers can probably tell I’m into Caesars these days. I made this one myself!

The Veni Vini Vici Caesar

  • Add directly into a tall glass:
    • 1 tsp Cholula hot sauce
    • dash Worcestershire sauce
    • the juice of 1 wedge lime (throw the lime in afterwards)
    • 2 oz clam nectar
    • splash olive juice
    • 2 oz frozen vodka
    • a few grinds of fresh black pepper
  • Top with V8, garnish with celery stick and some olives, serve immediately.

Happy summer everyone!